Am I the only one who thinks a 72-hour cold ferment for pizza dough is a waste compared to a solid 24-hour one?

I chose the 24-hour ferment for my pop-up last weekend and the crust had better oven spring and a more consistent crumb structure, so has anyone else actually compared the results side by side?

2 comments

2 Comments

kai5641mo agoTop Commenter

Totally agree. Did a side by side test last month. The 72 hour dough was more sour, sure, but it lost too much strength. The 24 hour batch had way better structure, held its shape. For a Neapolitan style at home, 24 is the sweet spot. Gets that puff without going flat.

the_elizabeth1mo ago

Yeah but what about the FLOUR you're using. That's the real game changer. A weaker flour will fall apart after 24 hours no matter what. I switched to a higher protein bread flour for my long ferments and it holds up fine. The sour taste builds but the dough stays strong. Most people blame the time when it's actually their ingredients.